Honor You
by WaterLily95
Summary: Zuko didn't understand power. Sure it meant blazing the opponent's pants on fire and manipulating him to bow down to you, but did it also require overlooking the one who could've been the real heir to the throne? Overlooking reality? Maybe a certain soldier boy can give him a clue. ONESHOT


**_Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender._**

**_Author's Note: _**I kind of wanted to portray young Zuko as an innocent little prince, caught in strands of power. The possibility of him having a one-sided conversation with cousin and veteran Lu Ten really seemed to stand out to me. The idea hit me just today and I whipped up a quick drabble on it. Besides the rushed parts, enjoy the story! :D

* * *

**Honor You**

The young prince sat, staring at the portrait of his cousin. In his hands he fiddled with a knife. Not just any knife- the knife his uncle had sent him just a few days before. He didn't move an inch, though his family was making preparations for his father's coronation and the palace was bustling with activity. He didn't glare when his sister kept taunting him to make him feel worse than before. And it wasn't just his mother who still lingered on his mind. He blinked, though regretting the fact that he did and interrupted his observation of his cousin's concentrating face on the last portrait painted before his death.

Zuko didn't understand power. Sure it meant blazing the opponent's pants on fire and manipulating him to bow down to you, but did it also require overlooking the one who could've been the real heir to the throne? Overlooking reality? Did it require the immediate lapse of memory regarding the Fire Lady? He just didn't understand. Where was consideration in power? Where was love in power? Was it just something that enables you to constantly duel everyone you see? See everybody as your enemy?

Yes, Ozai was going to be the new Fire Lord. Yes, Zuko was probably going to be the next one up (though he wasn't too sure about the idea). But what about Iroh? Surely if Lu Ten was alive Iroh would have been next in line for the throne. And Lu Ten would've been in his place afterwards.

Zuko glanced intently on his deceased cousin's portrait. "Would you be mad at me right now?"

Lu Ten seemed to have sprung back to life and comforted him with what could've been eyes full of life and guidance. But the portrait seemed to hit him into reality so hard that it pained the young prince not to receive a reaction.

"Would you? After all, I'm going to take your place."

Regardless of the fact that his cousin wasn't going to respond to him, Zuko didn't mind rambling aimlessly.

"Would you have let me take your place? I don't know if I would have."

Staring at the portrait wasn't starting to help him now. He leaned back, fingering the knife in his hands more freely. "I thought Uncle was going to be mad. But he's not. We should still be in mourning by now."

Smoke from the incense wrapped itself around him, as if trying to comfort him.

"The truth is, I kind of feel sick about it. You know, celebrating while you're not here."

Rampage outside the doors of the room woke him from his trance, but he easily slipped back into the one-sided conversation.

"You're probably really mad at me. At us. You gave up your life for our country and we're just sitting here partying. But… I hope you're not. I miss you. Uncle misses you. The Fire Nation misses you. Besides, you'd be a better prince than me."

His hands curled into a little, boyish fist. His little heart leaped violently. Tears dripped softly down his cheeks as he thought of his mother's last words before she left. His throat burned mercilessly the more he stared at Lu Ten's picture.

"My mom is and adult. She probably had a good excuse to just disappear. Why did _you _have to go, Lu Ten? Would you come back if I gave up being the prince?!"

He sighed and placed his head down on the small table before him, closing his eyes. "I'm so alone. I wish you were here to tell me these things."

But what he didn't understand was that power didn't transcend death even for the royal family…thanks to this thing called love.


End file.
